Everton are continuing to negotiate with Rafa Benitez about their vacant manager’s position, but the leadership want to avoid another ‘Gattuso case’ as was seen at Tottenham.
That’s according to Calciomercato.it and journalist Mirko Calemme, who also works for Spanish newspaper AS.
He explains that Everton remain ‘in talks’ with the former Liverpool manager, however, those in charge at Goodison Park are worried about ‘fan discontent’.
Benitez’s priority is to return to the Premier League after his time in China, and Everton would be ‘perfect’ as his family still lives on Merseyside.
The Italian boss was in line to replace Jose Mourinho in London, then an intense negative reaction from the fanbase saw Daniel Levy and co turn away and look elsewhere.
Everton want to avoid a similar situation, and with their fans having already ‘expressed dissent’ towards the potential appointment, the ‘reflections within the club’ are ongoing.
Indeed, according to Calciomercato.it, should Benitez be discarded as an option, it will be ‘mainly due’ to the ‘external pressures’ from the fanbase. In other words, Everton fans could stop the appointment from happening.
The interesting part of this is that it comes from a journalist who also works for a major Spanish newspaper.
That would suggest that the information could be coming from Benitez and his camp, who may have had a hint from Everton that they’re worried about the reaction from the fanbase.
That’s entirely speculation on our part but what is clear is that Everton fans could end up stopping Benitez’s potential arrival, having felt powerless to stop it over the last few weeks.
